United Wholesale Mortgage’s broker bombshell sinks in

He tempered his words in subsequent TV interviews, rejecting talk of a ‘dust-up’ with his rivals (“we’re just competitors”). His emphasis was on his “family” of mortgage brokers, insisting that they would always be able to offer consumers lower rates.

Exactly a week after his appearance on Facebook, UWM released a statement saying that more than 90% of broker shops had stuck with Ishbia and signed an addendum, stating they would no longer work with Rocket and Fairway. Ishbia had got his way, claiming that only about 500 brokers had decided to walk.

Some brokers went on record to show their support for Ishbia, including E Mortgage Capital CEO Joseph Shalaby and Christoffer Groves, owner of Groves Capital.

United Wholesale Lending’s Peter Galvez said: “The mortgage and real industry is changing. We have seen how Zillow and Redfin have leveraged technology in an attempt to slowly eliminate the need for local real estate agents.

“We are seeing the same trend with certain lenders who are aggressively pursuing our past clients while simultaneously marketing directly to our realtors.